


You're Staring

by LoverlyMadhatter



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Arashi being an angel, Embarrassment, F/M, First Dates, Fluff, Holding Hands, Romance, Staring, Trans Character, Trans Female Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-15
Updated: 2017-01-15
Packaged: 2018-09-17 17:27:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9335156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoverlyMadhatter/pseuds/LoverlyMadhatter
Summary: Arashi and Mika are on a date, and Mika gets a little uncomfortable. Arashi just will not stop staring at him.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Team Arashi Deserves Better 2kforever.
> 
> I love Arashi, I love Mika, they're both my faves, and I want to see them kiss.

It’s cold outside while Mika waits: his jacket is too thin and he should have worn leggings underneath his pants. It wouldn’t even be a problem if this whole date wasn’t _outside_.

He bites the inside of his cheek while he shivers. A _date_. That’s what this is.

The excitement bubbles up in his chest, not for the first time, and fills his body with heat – right, that’s why he wore such a thin jacket: Shu told him it was going to be cold, but every time he thought about Arashi, his body got so hot that he didn’t feel like he needed it. And now he was here, shivering outside the park, his body cold again.

“Mika!” comes her tinkling voice, loud over the din of people on the sidewalk. He turns and she’s there, blue eyes sparkling like the sun shining through snowflakes. Before he knows what to do, she’s pressing a warm kiss to his cheek, and his stomach does a little flip.

“Naru-chan,” he greets with a grin. The kiss still burns on his cheek, and he’s not sure what to do with his hands. Luckily, Arashi decides for him and grasps them tightly. She’s positively vibrating and the way it lights up her whole face makes Mika sure he’s going to melt.

“How was the train ride?” she asks, and they fall into simple conversation like it’s a normal day at school. Not a romantic date at the park. Which it is.

Arashi was known for hanging around with classmates after school: if they were her friends, she would invite them for coffee, dinner, walks in the park, whatever was on her mind; if they weren’t her friends, she would invite them anyway. She had asked Mika on a couple of different occasions, but he always had to decline: too expensive, too far away. But, when she asked him again _and_ offered to pay for everything well… he couldn’t turn down his friend, could he?

He didn’t realize it was a date until much later. He had always liked Arashi, sure – she was beautiful, funny, and kind – but he hadn’t realized just _how much_ until Shu pointed it out to him.

“This isn’t just a regular hang out, Mika,” Shu huffed, exasperated as he hunched over his latest project for Mademoiselle. “She _likes_ you.”

Mika had rolled his eyes, puffing the hair out of his face. “Nah.”

“Mika, she’s paying for your dinner,” Shu argued, narrowing his eyes.

“Yeah, but it’s ‘cause she knows I’m broke.”

“She wouldn’t be paying if it wasn’t a date.”

Mika still didn’t quite believe it until Shu added, “Plus, she’s been talking about it to literally _everyone_ and it’s _definitely_ a date”

And, just to clear the last of his doubt, she kissed his face. He liked her kisses.

The two of them walk and talk through the park, easy and comfortable. It’s easy to fall into a rhythm with Arashi, babbling on like he can’t when he’s at home with Shu. It’s all fine until Arashi notices him shivering.

“You’re cold,” she states, not a question.

His fingers are tucked up inside his thin jacket, legs shaking in his pants, and he can’t prove to her that he isn’t. Mika smiles sheepishly.

“I, uh, didn’t realize it was going to be so cold,” he replies, scratching the back of his head. He’s too embarrassed to tell her the real reason – to tell her that every time he thinks about her his body temperature rises a few degrees.

“Absolutely not. Why didn’t you tell me you were _freezing_?” She’s grasping his hands now, holding them between hers, and all Mika can think about is how soft they are. When she’s this close, he can smell her perfume, fruity and floral and intoxicating. Arashi searches his face, then opens her mouth and breathes gently on his hands, drawing blood back into them.

She’s searching his face, eyes bright and _too_ intense. Mika tries to look away, but something about her draws him back in, and he feels blood dust his cheeks. She’s staring so intently that it makes him squirm – even if it’s Arashi, it makes him uncomfortable when people stare. They’re always looking at his eyes, always telling him he’s weird, but just as he’s about to ask her to stop, she turns on her heel.

“Let’s go inside!” she exclaims. He’s relieved that her eyes are off of him, but his body starts burning again anyway when Arashi’s fingers slot between his.

**

“Arashi Naruko,” she chirps at the hostess counter, and Mika’s face is on _fire_ : they’re eating at a restaurant where you have to _make reservations_. Mika’s pretty sure he’s only been somewhere this nice once or twice, and it’s definitely outside of his comfort zone. He’s nervous and underdressed, but Arashi moves with such a casual and confident air that his nerves start to calm. The hostess stares at them for a moment, and Mika feels his face get hot, but then she’s grabbing for menus and leading them to a table.

Arashi still hasn’t let go of his hand.

“Naru-chan,” he whispers, hopefully quiet enough that the hostess can’t hear them. “Are you sure this is ok?”

She turns to him, eyebrows furrowed. “Is what ok?”

Mika gestures to, well, everything in the restaurant. “It seems… expensive.”

Her eyes burn holes into him, and then she’s laughing that tinkling laugh again, waving her hand in front of her face. “Don’t worry about it! You’re my date.” She winks, and Mika’s sure his whole neck turns red.

She finally has to let go of his hand when the hostess sits them down, and Mika’s surprised by how much he misses the contact. Even though it didn’t matter now that they were inside, her hand was warm, sending warmth through his entire body, and without it he felt like something was missing.

Mika’s face is red, and he can feel it, so instead of looking at Arashi, he decides to look through the menu. He’s absorbed in looking through the menu, so much so that he doesn’t feel Arashi’s eyes. It surprises him when he looks up, finding her staring at him. She doesn’t seem to notice that she’s doing it, because even when he makes eye contact she doesn’t stop. There’s a concentrated look on her face, like she’s studying. Feeling the uncomfortable memory of scrutiny, he starts to squirm again. Just as he’s about to ask her to stop, the waiter comes over, and the moment is broken.

Arashi’s face softens back into that easy grin and Mika’s heart drops down out of his throat. What was she thinking? What was _he_ thinking? Maybe this was all a joke – maybe she just invited him so she could see how the poor act in fine restaurants. Maybe she just wanted to stare at him and make fun of him later. He thought Arashi was better than that, but the nagging feeling in his mind doesn’t go away.

Not until she reaches for his hand under the table and twines her fingers with his.

**

The night air is even colder when they leave the restaurant. Dinner flew by without another hitch, just a lot of Arashi’s fingers touching his under the table. He was a little embarrassed about it at first, face boiling, but then he realized no one was looking at them. Plus, her fingers were so soft, tracing lines down his palms, and his face gets hot just thinking about it.

Now she’s holding his hand again, fingers laced through his as they walk to the train station. His neck turns red, and when she lays her head on his shoulder, he’s sure he’ll melt into the snow.

“Thanks for letting me borrow your jacket,” Mika says sheepishly, squeezing her hand in his. She smiles that brilliant smile and looks over at him.

“No problem!” You look better in it than I do, anyway.”

He snorts. There’s no way he could look better in _anything_ than Arashi; she was just too beautiful.

They board the train as soon as it pulls into the station. Other couples on the train sit together, heads on shoulders, hands clasped, and when Mika realizes he’s one of those couples, his stomach ties itself in knots.

“Do you want your jacket back?” he asks her.

Arashi turns against the wall and crosses one leg over the other, facing him. “Nah,” she says with a shrug. “You can wear it home.”

“Are you… sure?” Secretly, Mika is thrilled. The jacket smells like her, and every time he shifts, the smell hits him. Being enveloped by Arashi’s smell is incredible; Mika might buy her perfume just to smell it all the time.

“Absolutely!” Her smile is brilliant and glowing. “I can just get it back at school on Monday.”

Mika wouldn’t admit it out loud, but his heart falls a little bit. Oh well – the weekend is a long time, but all good things must come to an end.

Which is all too true when their conversation ends, and he finds Arashi staring intently at him again.

It’s awkward, a cute and warm moment turning quickly south. Arashi keeps staring at him, boring holes into his skin, into his confidence, and he has to look away. This time, there’s nothing to interrupt her, nothing to stop her, and Mika’s squirming under her gaze.

The train car is silent except for the dull rumble across the tracks. Her hand is warm in his, but his whole body feels cold while her eyes burrow into him. It’s not a joke, right? She’s holding his hand, she’s kissed him, she’s letting him borrow her jacket. It can’t be a joke, right?

“Naru-chan…” he mutters, and it seems to catch her attention. Arashi shakes her head, eyes losing that fierce focus. Mika finally is able to let out his breath, but his skin is still crawling. “Could you – ah – stop… staring at me?”

It’s blunt, and for a moment, Arashi seems taken aback. His paranoia rages inside of him and ultimately forces the words out of his mouth. “I know they’re weird,” he blurts, and then he can’t stop. He takes his hand out of Arashi’s and keeps going. “It’s just… that’s how they are and they’ve always been like that and people are always asking about them and I don’t like it and I thought that you – “

“Wait,” she says, shaking her head. “Was I staring?”

“Uh,” he sputters. “Y-yeah.”

There’s a moment of silence, and then Arashi’s face breaks into something _broken._ Mika’s heart sinks into his stomach and he’s sure he never wants to see that face again.

“Oh my god, Mika.” Her voice is breathy and shaking. “I’m so sorry. I… I didn’t realize that I was staring.” Now she’s vomiting words, but her voice is so calm and smooth that it doesn’t sound like vomit: it sounds like she knows exactly what she wants to say. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, that’s the last thing I want. I just never really noticed them and… I guess I got caught up in looking at them. They’re just so _beautiful_ that I couldn’t – “

Mika’s breath rushes out of him, and before he realizes it, he’s grasping Arashi’s hand again.

“What?” he splutters, interrupting. “What did you say?”

“That your eyes are beautiful.”

“They’re… weird.”

She’s smiling now, bringing his hands up to her mouth and pressing a light kiss to them. “No, they’re stunning.”

Everything is happening so quickly and Mika’s not sure of anything. Arashi is coming toward him, and she gets so close to his face that he closes his eyes in surprise. Then, instead of crashing into his face, he feels the soft press of lips against his eyelid. She presses a kiss to his other eyelid, and then she’s backing away.

He’s scared to open his eyes until a thumb brushes over his cheek bone, soft and warm. She meets his gaze before leaning forward, her lips soft when they press against his. She tastes like strawberry chapstick.

“Don’t worry about giving my jacket back on Monday,” she says, still so close to his face that he can feel her breathe. “You can… hold onto it.” Arashi punctuates the sentence with another kiss, and her eyes sparkle with an intensity rivalling the sun and all the stars. Instead of making him squirm, they fill him with warmth. He gazes back into them, hoping that she never stops staring at him.


End file.
